12/20/17

Best Punk & Hardcore of 2017

Alright, we know how this goes. These aren't necessarily all of the best punk and hardcore records of 2017, rather some of the best punk and hardcore records that came out in 2017. It's all stuff that was either sent to me for free (which I am continually grateful for) or that I purchased myself. I mean, it's not like I didn't put any work into compiling this. It's not just a master list of everything I listened to this year. I definitely did not include stuff that sucked, like the Career Suicide record, or stuff that I didn't get a chance to listen to, like the newest HIRS record.

This runs alphabetical by band name because it's easy to sort in an Excel spreadsheet, and also because rankings are bullshit. If you really want to know what I think was the absolute best, I'd say it's a tie between Haram, Limp Wrist, and Barcelona, with Daudyflin, Anxiety, and Una Bestia Incontrolable tied for second.

As far as labels go, La Vida Es Un Mus Discos Punk ran away with it yet again, but Static Shock, and Toxic State are worthy contenders. I guess Beach Impediment is worth a mention too.

Seven to 10 songs on a 12" that plays at 45 RPM is still the best format. I never need to see another 7" that costs over five dollars ever again. Just put that shit on a tape already. Props to those that put out nice looking product even though it's not necessary.

This is still work in progress, as I'll come back and add more words from time to time, so check back if words are a thing you care about. If I missed something, hit me up. I welcome the discourse. You can leave a comment if you want, but comments are like, so 2006. Take it to Twitter homie.

-Nathan G. O'Brien

Anarquia Vertical - Sistem Total De Liberacion (La Vida)
Barcelona, Spain
Raw hardcore indebted to the '80s Spanish and Italian style. B-side contains a darkened electronic remix of all the tracks on the A-side.

Concealed Blade - Self-Titled LP (Beach Impediment)
Pittsburgh, PA
I wonder if any of these guys have ever been in a knife fight? I mean, I haven't but I'm not in a band called Concealed Blade.

Daudyflin - Ofbeldi LP (Irong Lung)
Iceland
Thankfully I never got into meth. I did it a few times just to like, have the experience or whatever, but it was pretty dumb and I'll definitely never do it again.

Dream Probe - Demo I cassette / Demo II cassette (Prescience Tapes)
Champagne, IL
My kid was tearing around the house the other day and his nose was running so bad that it was pouring into his mouth. All of a sudden he coughed really hard and puked up a bunch of snot. It was super gross.

Eel - Night Parade of 100 Demons LP (Beach Impediment)
Pittsburgh, PA
"Noise not music" is funny thing that people say because they think it makes them seem cool.

Fence Cutter - Demo cassette (Psychotic Break)
Perth Amboy, NJ
There's never been a better album cover nor will there ever be again.

Facial - Facade LP (Chain Letter)
Los Angeles, CA
Once upon a time there was a thing called the 1990s. It was pretty cool.

Fried Egg - Back and Forth 7" (Beach Impediment)
Richmond, VA
I had one of those “naked egg tacos” from Taco Bell, where they employ innovative techniques like using a fried egg as taco shell. Just kidding, that’s a total lie. I haven’t had anything from Taco Bell since what is commonly referred to by those in attendance as “The Black Tar Incident” back in ‘04.

Full Contact - Demo cassette (Self-Released)
Oakland, CA

FYPM - Dumbed Down LP (Tankcrimes)
Cleveland, OH

Glue - Self-Titled LP (La Vida)
Austin, TX

Gutter Knife -Demo cassette (Self-Released)
Brighton, UK

Haram - When You Have Won, You Have Lost LP (Toxic State)
New York, NY

HVAC - Mentality cassette (Self-Released)
New York, NY
When my kid was a baby I never would have said what I'm about to say. In fact, I'd pray for the exact opposite, yet here I am saying it now: Please don't stop screaming. Please don't ever stop screaming.

Impalers - Cellar Dweller LP (Static Shock)
Austin, TX

Institute - Insubordination LP (Sacred Bones)
Austin, TX

Katastrof - Self-Titled 7" (Beach Impediment)
Sweden
Drop the needle on this one and let the blaze burn through your cranium like a Dinobots clear cutter parting a forest of sequoias for Kang the Conqueror to come eat your babies.

Krimewatch - Self-Titled 7" (Static Shock)
New York, NY
Spelling things wrong is fun. Using a K for a C, clever. I mean, I use a Z for an S, so who am I to complain?

Limp Wrist - Facades LP (La Vida)
Chicago, IL
Don't be surprised if every band next year sounds like side B of this record.

Long Knife - Sewers of Babylon 7" (Beach Impediment)
Portland, OR
Not much new here in terms of growth, but they’ve gotten a little creative. I mean, inasmuch as adding organ to a song can be considered creative. I normally would turn my nose up at this sort of thing, but it’s not as disruptive to the overall sound as it often is when bands think they’re being cool.

Milk Music - Mystic 100s LP (Dom Amercia)
Olympia, WA
Fuzzed-out vibes that work well alongside the morning cup of coffee, the sunny bike ride to work, the happy hour beers, the party in the park, and the bike ride back home down darkened streets. Or ya'know, whatever you do with your day.

Mutual Jerk - Self-Titled 7" (State Laughter)
Atlanta, GA
Do you know how much a plane ticket to Atlanta from Minneapolis is in March? Too much. That's how much.

Nosebleed - Self-Titled 7" (Grave Mistake)
Richmond, VA

Pinkgrip - Demo cassette (Far So Far)
London, UK

Pissed Jeans - Why Love Now LP (Sub Pop)
Allentown, PA
Take it from me, it's weird being a narcissist that also hates himself. Being a Pissed Jeans fan has both helped and made it worse. Thanks for everything/nothing, assholes.

Priests - Nothing Feels Natural LP (Sister Polygon)
Washington, D.C.
Priests somehow manage to offer an escape from this messed-up world by making the listener revel in it. That's called punk, I think.

Pure Mania - Cerebros Punk LP (Sabotage)
Vancouver / Mexico City
Punk walked through miles of broken glass and vomit to get to post-punk.

Rabid Minds - Demo cassette (Layin' Waste)
NYC/Bay Area
At some point demo tapes just became the way a hardcore record should sound. I'm not sure but I might be the one that made this rule up. Rules usually suck, but in this case it's hard to argue the opposite.

Rakta - Oculto Pelos Seres 7" (La Vida)
Brazil
Saw them at What We Like Fest and it was like... I don't know, an experience.

Rash / C.H.E.W. - Split 7" (Slugsalt)
Chicago, IL

Rata Negra - Oido Absoluto LP (La Vida)
Madrid, Spain
If you had told me this was some recently excavated ‘80s gem getting the reissue treatment I’d have no reason not to believe you. It's not though.

Rixe - Bapteme Du Feu 7" (La Vida)
France
“Paris-Est” is a standout track. It starts off with a killer marching-style drum beat, which leads way to a spiking onslaught of hoarse precision. And the sprinkle on top is the cool echo effect on the vocals at the end of the chorus. Whether Rixe have some tricks up the sleeves of their pressed Ben Shermans, remains to be seen. But there’s a strong hint they do.

S.H.I.T. - i7" (La Vida)
Toronto
The aura of leather jacket-clad arrogance that I’ve always appreciated is still intact, but they’ve evolved a bit.Musicality-wise, it’s still that buzzing, noisy crux that we go gaga for but with a little wiggle room for each player to flex their chops.

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